Barracuda
Allen & Unwin, $32.99 pb, 528 pp, 9781743317310
Barracuda by Christos Tsiolkas
Christos Tsiolkas takes on Australian society once more in his new novel, Barracuda, and there are plenty of reading-group talking points in this follow-up to The Slap (2008). While there is no mistaking the Big Issue goals of the novel, this is also an uncompromising, loving portrayal of one man who wants to find a way not to damage himself and those around him. It’s the story of how Dan Kelly fights through personal and social barriers towards an ethical self he can live with – or, to use Tsiolkas’s own imagery, it’s about how he must swim through barracuda-infested waters to reach a safe harbour and tranquillity.
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